


Sick Day

by Confetti94



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Alternate Universe, Other, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-22
Updated: 2015-05-22
Packaged: 2018-03-31 16:07:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3984319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Confetti94/pseuds/Confetti94
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kaneki wakes up and finds that he isn't feeling quite right; naturally, he decides not to think much of it and ends up making things worse than they have to be.</p><p>No pairings, but if you squint you can probably pretend there are. Probably some OOC moments because this is my first fan fiction ever. Enjoy!</p><p>(Really bad and rushed, would not recommend)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sick Day

**Author's Note:**

> Constructive criticism greatly appreciated! Enjoy the story. ;^O
> 
> edit: christ this is so bad

The first thing Kaneki noticed when he woke up was that the _entire room_ was spinning. The second thing was that he definitely did _not_ feel this nauseous when he had gone to sleep.

 

So, naturally, the first thing he did was stand up at mach one. He almost fell over and crushed the coffee table.

 

Righting himself, he stretched his limbs and blinked the sleep out of his eyes. Half walking, half stumbling, he lumbered over to the back door and drew the curtains. Sunlight stabbed his eyes, and he fell as if an invisible force pushed him off his feet. The noise must have alerted Touka that he was finally awake, and he cursed softly under his breath.

 

“Everyone left while you were asleep and you’re now trapped in the storyline of Home Alone,” he heard a voice yell from the room over, and he didn’t even bother with a reply.

 

He barely had put on his sweatshirt when Touka forced her way into the room and started dragging him to their usual spot.

 

“Give me a second!” Kaneki protested as he tried to zip up the sweatshirt with Touka’s hand on his elbow.

 

“I was getting impatient. If I had waited any longer I might have gone into hibernation,” she replied, and Kaneki made a face that she may or may not have seen. He now noticed how tired he was and wondered if he could convince Touka to drop him on the ground, where he could fall asleep in peace. Maybe he could catch a cold in the process and not have to go through Touka’s CCG-worthy ghoul gym class.

 

“Hibernation sounds great right now. Can we do that instead?”

 

“No.”

 

“You didn’t even try to humor me that time.”

 

“You serenade me with your feeble protests.”

  
  
“There it is.”

 

Eventually Touka let go of his elbow, which allowed him to zip up his sweatshirt and continue to stretch his muscles. As they were about to leave the cafe, Hinami burst through the back room with her jacket slung over her shoulder.

 

“Wait for me!” She called, a smile splattered across her face. The two ghouls slowed their pace, which gave Kaneki a chance to breathe.

 

“You coming with us?” Touka asked, a hint of amusement in her voice. “I’d love to see you try to keep up with my fighting.”

 

“Don’t attempt. It will end with serious injury,” Kaneki warned, actually slightly worried that Touka was being serious.

 

“I asked the Manager, and he said it would be fine as long as you were okay with it,” she beamed, a pleading look in her eyes. “Can I?”

 

“Oh, I don’t know…” Touka smirked, rolling back on her heels. “I would really have to think about it, and even then Kaneki would have to give you permission.”

 

Hinami pouted.

 

“Come on! I won’t jump into the battle, I promise!” she protested, gesturing wildly with her arms to exaggerate her sincerity.

 

“Alright then. Well, we don’t want to be late, do we? Prove to me that you’re worth my time!” Touka said, already beginning to leave the two other ghouls in the dust. Hinami yelped and ran after her.

 

“Let’s go, let’s go!” She squealed, grabbing Kaneki’s sleeve and tugging to get him to move. Suddenly, she stopped and sniffed the air. Kaneki glanced down curiously at her sudden lack of movement.

 

“Hinami?” He asked, concern edging his voice.

 

“Onii-chan…you smell weird.”

 

“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean?” He yelped, blushing with embarrassment. Hinami didn’t seem to notice, too focused on what she was smelling. She shook her head, clearing her thoughts.

 

“Nevermind, it must have been my imagination. Let’s hurry up so Touka doesn’t get bragging rights over beating us there.”

 

\---

 

Touka still got bragging rights, despite their efforts to catch up with the agile ghoul. She’d been waiting for them in their usual training location. As the two ghouls neared, Kaneki struggling to breathe, she landed in front of them with her kagune released.

 

“Took you long enough.”

 

“Onii-chan went too slow, and I couldn’t go on ahead and leave him alone,” Hinami whispered, giggling at Kaneki’s reaction.

 

“That’s a lie and you know it. See, you’re laughing! That automatically means it’s not a fact,” Kaneki muttered, still out of breath from the run.

 

 _That’s definitely strange_ , Touka thought to herself. _He shouldn’t be so tired from that. He’s been training for a while, so he’s bound to be in better shape than Hinami - but Hinami isn’t even breaking a sweat_. She shoved the thought aside. If he was losing his endurance, she would just have to shape him back up again.

 

“Save the excuses for later. We came here to put on a show for Hinami, did we not?” Touka teased, putting her hands on her hips and tilting her head back proudly as she spoke. “I’m going to attack you at the count of three. That means you have three seconds to plan your defense and incapacitate me.”

 

“Three seconds? I can’t just -”

 

“One.”

 

“Touka-chan!”

 

“Two...better get ready.”

 

Kaneki scoffed and put himself into a stance. Hinami sprung for the sidelines, eyes glimmering with anticipation.

 

“Three!”

 

The words barely left Touka’s mouth before she surged forward, kagune pulsing wildly like a forest fire. Kaneki threw himself to the side, barely missing a kick from her foot that would’ve crushed his ribs. His body ached in protest, but he barely felt it with the adrenaline rushing through his veins. Somewhere to his right, Hinami gasped in awe.

 

 _It’s time to show off, isn’t it?_ Kaneki thought, grinning to himself. _Centipede versus bird. I am the centipede, and I’m so quick that the bird can’t pick me up._ He chuckled lightly at his own joke before he began concentrating on bringing out his kagune.

 

Almost immediately he realized something was wrong.

 

Where a ten-foot-long kagune should have been, there were short spindles barely stretching the length of his arms. Before he could analyze the situation, Touka had brought herself in for another attack. Veering backwards out of her reach, he hissed and tried bringing out his kagune again, sweat beginning to form on his forehead. Touka’s eyes narrowed as she dropped down and feigned an attack, then darted forward to jab Kaneki in the shoulder. He blocked with his other arm and grunted at the force, which sent him skidding several meters across the ground.

 

She went in for another attack, which Kaneki narrowly avoided as he rolled out of her way. Touka snarled in frustration at another failed attack, and she whirled on him. For each swing, he jumped and scrambled out of the way - a slippery target that this bird could not wrap her talons around. With a huff of annoyance, she fell back and took a moment to regain herself.

 

 _Is he fucking around with me?_ She thought, gritting her teeth. _He hasn’t even attempted an attack, not to mention he hasn’t unleashed his kagune yet._ So _what_ was he doing?

 

Kaneki stumbled to a halt, clutching his arm. His breath was ragged, and Hinami felt ice run through her veins at what sounded like rattling in his chest. She didn’t have a chance to say anything before the fighting continued.

 

“Touka, I think -” Kaneki didn’t get a chance to speak his mind either.

 

Touka flew at him, literally, putting her entire body into her attack. She had expected resistance - not a Kaneki being sent flying through the air, crashing into a wall with a loud crack. Her eyes widened in surprise.

 

Kaneki struggled to his feet, blood running down his arms, before he collapsed on his knees with a thud. Hinami shrieked.

 

“Something’s wrong!” The Hinami screamed, bolting to the wounded ghoul. “So _that’s_ what I smelled…”

 

 _No shit_ , Touka snapped in her mind, sprinting to Kaneki’s side. He had clearly started falling into unconsciousness.

 

“Kaneki? Kaneki, where does it hurt?” She asked, trying to swallow the panic in her voice.

 

“Everywhere,” he answered, though he sounded confused and half asleep.

 

She crouched down beside him and lifted his head up, snapping her fingers in front of his face. He jolted and looked up at her, his eyes distant. Hinami was poking him all over, trying to check him for injuries. He winced, and his kagune protectively lashed out at her.

 

At least, it tried to, since it was so small that it barely grazed her arm. Touka raised an eyebrow.

 

“Kaneki, do you feel like you’re sick?”

 

“Abso-fucking-lutely,” he slurred about five seconds later, which made Hinami even more nervous.

 

“Are you healing your wounds up? You need to do that. Are you doing that?” Touka questioned frantically, not caring that her worry was beginning to show.

 

“I’m _trying_ but I _can’t_ ,” he breathed, eyes starting to droop again. Touka sighed.

 

“I know what’s wrong,” she muttered. She flicked Kaneki’s head in frustration and vaulted him up so he could lean on her shoulder. Though he tried standing on his own, he looked more like a newborn giraffe than a coordinated person. Hinami was at his side in an instant, helping him balance.

 

“No, Hinami. You should go back and get the Manager so he can help me bring this heavy ass Tentacool back,” she said, slipping the joke in to lighten the mood. Hinami did not look amused.

 

“But I want to help!”  
  
“You’ll be helping by getting him for us,” She growled back, not eager to argue with her. Hinami took the hint and nodded, face set with determination.

 

“Be back in a flash!” She promised, and then she was gone.

 

When Touka was sure Hinami was out of range, she turned her attention back to Kaneki. Then, she aimed all her anxiety and anger at him and shot him square in the face.

 

“You fucking idiot! Did it not occur to you to tell me that you were sick so I wouldn’t pound your ass into the concrete?” She yelled, which made Kaneki flinch.

 

“I didn’t know!” He cried, his eyebrows knitting together in concentration. “Maybe I felt like I had a cold or something, but I didn’t know it would prevent my kagune from being released!”

 

“That doesn’t mean that you couldn’t have given me a nice heads up so I could, you know, spare your life?”

 

“I wanted to show Hinami how strong I’ve gotten!”

 

“You’re still strong if you’ve got a cold, you’re just...slightly weaker. Barely.”

 

“Barely? I’ve got ramen noodles for a kagune.”

 

“Fair enough. But still, you made Hinami worry!” Touka muttered, lumbering forward with Kaneki dragging himself along.

 

“Like I said, I didn’t know,” He protested weakly, feeling his eyelids droop again. Touka kicked his shin as a warning, and he yelped.

 

“Stop doing that!”

 

“Doing what?”

 

“Waking me up like that!”

 

“Sorry, I can’t let you go into hibernation without me. That wouldn’t be very fair.”

 

“You’re not fair.”

 

“Nice comeback.”

 

“Heck you,” Kaneki retorted, trying to keep himself from growing sleepy.

 

The two walked in silence for a while, slowly shuffling across the ground as the sun moved across the sky. Soon enough, Touka heard footsteps headed in their direction, and she let out a sigh of relief. Help had arrived.

 

“Kaneki,” She whispered, and he made a noise to indicate he’d heard her. “You can go to sleep now.”

 

“Mmkay,” He murmured, and immediately his entire body went limp, which made Touka’s job of steadying him a million times harder. Luckily, two ghouls had arrived to carry him back. As they scurried back towards the cafe, Touka stared at Kaneki’s limp form and made a face at him.

 

“Idiot,” She muttered.

 

\---

 

The first thing that Kaneki noticed when he woke up was that he was way too warm. The second thing was that Hide would not shut the fuck up.

 

Kaneki wasn’t normally bothered by Hide’s ramblings, but when someone has a fever and feels half dead, they’re more prone to annoyance.

 

“Hide,” He snapped, immediately gathering the attention of the blonde as well as the ghouls around him. “Use your indoor voice like they taught you in school.”

 

“Sleeping beauty has awoken. Who gave the kiss?” Hide shot back, crossing his arms.

 

“Fate. So I could wake up and kick your ass.”

 

“Have fun with that,” Hide said, smiling back at him. “Welcome back. How’re you feeling?”

 

“Like shit.”

 

“That’s to be expected,” Touka said, glancing over Kaneki with a hint of concern in her voice. “I got this same illness when I was little. It lasted for weeks, but luckily your ghoul healing is helping to fight it off quickly. That means we hear less complaining and more productivity out of you.”

 

“Thanks for your loving concern,” He muttered, though her statement didn’t particularly bother him. “What’s up with this anyway? Some sort of superbug?”

 

“Basically, except it only infects ghouls. It prevents the body from creating RC cells, so your kagune as well as your healing abilities are greatly nerfed,” Hinami chimed in, scooting over to Kaneki. “Do you need anything?”

 

Kaneki smiled warmly at her.

 

“Can I have a glass of water? Thank you.”

 

Hinami beamed at him and scurried off.

 

“What a charmer,” Hide mused under his breath. Kaneki kicked him with his foot.

 

“Anyway, will I be able to use my kagune anytime soon?” Kaneki asked.

 

“I wouldn’t try, unless you want to get turned into a quinque for the CCG,” Touka joked darkly. Kaneki laughed nervously.

 

“Sounds fun. Sign me up.”

 

“I’ll be the quinque user,” Hide said with a straight face, and Kaneki gave him a horrified look. He threw his head back and laughed. “I’m joking! I’m joking. Don’t kill me. I won’t snitch.”

 

“E _ven though snitches get bitches_ ,” Hide muttered very quietly.

 

“Can I kill him anyway?” Touka whispered.

 

“Go ahead. It’s not like I can stop you,” Kaneki shrugged, glancing at Hide. Hide swallowed hard.

 

“That’s true. You kagune is about as useless as a deflated pool noodle,” Touka mused.

 

“Pool noodles can’t be deflated. They’re hollow tubes of foam.”

 

“Okay, fine. You kagune is about as useless as a deflated pool floatie.”

 

“That’s even _worse_. Hide, back me up here,” Kaneki protested, glaring at Touka.

 

“You kagune is about as useless, although intriguing, as a really bad hentai manga.”

 

“Hide, what the fuck?”

 

Hide shrugged as if to say ‘you asked, I answered’. Kaneki gave up and rolled over on the couch, pulling the blankets over his head. Hide was about to pull the blanket off when Touka put a hand on his shoulder.

 

“Let the beast sleep,” she said, which earned her a slap from Kaneki’s noodle kagune.

  
  


\---

  
  


When he wakes up again, he’s curled up in a ball, clutching his sides as he tries to control his new centipede kagune from sprouting again.

 

 _Let me sleep_ , he thinks. _You’ve already taken everything from me. At least let me_ sleep.

 

He still wishes they were beside him, making fun of his little kagune while making bad jokes and laughing like idiots.

 

 


End file.
